Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I am very happpy for having built my collection before the reformulation years. 97% of my bottles were bought before 2009 (most in 2007-2008), so just a few fragrances had already been changed. Azarro is one such example, it had already been reformulated by 2009.

I did buy more than one bottle of my very favorite perfumes, and I have 5 bottles of Hammam Bouquet, my signature scent. But sometimes I fear that I may not have hoarded deep enough and someday my favorite ones will be gone, and I will face the horrible reformulations.

What have you done in the past? Did you buy many bottles as I did, or did you miss the opportunity? I don't believe the regulations will ever be revoked, so this is a permanent damage to the perfume formulas. There is no way back.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

We're living in an era of exponential increase of available scents. While it's regrettable that a five star scent may no longer be available when my bottle runs out I'm so busy finding new masterpieces that I only shed one tear before moving on. I already have 37 scents in my collection and I'm only beginning this hobby. Instead of focusing on the past look to the glorious future is my philosophy.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

It's not a problem for me because I like heaps of scents ranging from my $7 ones to my $200 ones. No matter how much of a favourite a scent is now, and I may wear it ten times in a fortnight, I know I probably won't wear it for months afterwards. So I'm unlikely to ever run out of it.

I did do a bit of hoarding on bargains, like buying three bottles of Green Irish Tweed ($83 for 125ml bottle) and three of Tabarome Millesime ($67 for 125ml bottle) - but then found I was just using them for the sake of using them up, e.g for grocery shopping or going to the beach, rather than saving them for more special occasions or when in the mood. Which kind of devalued them in my mind.

Most of my more upmarket scents were bought before "reformulation" became the dirty word around here that it is now.
Cheers,
Renato

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I have backups of many of my favorites, but I am beginning to think I may never get to them.
As far as the old classics - many I wouldn't ben interested in anyway, but I do wish I had some of them. But, going forward, I will makes sure to have plenty of the ones I love.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I feel that I've got plenty and in fact have a few bottles of some that I can sell or use for swaps to get other vintage. For example, I have extra Giorgio for Men, Red for Men, Boss Cologne (now #1), Lagerfeld Cologne, IL Lancetti, Quorum, Homme de Gres, and Kouros. Then there are less known vintages, such as Voyage by Nautica made by Lancaster rather than Coty.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

Nothing I'd lose sleep over. Even without hoarding, my current wardrobe will outlive me and I'm still finding new favorites. If a rare vintage does run out, I'll take it out of rotation and keep the last 4-5 ml for future reference. But if you're the sort who sticks to one signature fragrance, I agree hoarding becomes important.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

Originally Posted by Diamondflame

Nothing I'd lose sleep over. Even without hoarding, my current wardrobe will outlive me and I'm still finding new favorites. If a rare vintage does run out, I'll take it out of rotation and keep the last 4-5 ml for future reference. But if you're the sort who sticks to one signature fragrance, I agree hoarding becomes important.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

When I see a bottle of Gucci Envy, I snag it. So far this strategy has yielded three 100ml bottles. Cipher that against the other bottles I own of everything else and I'll die before I run out of frags to wear.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

Unfortunately I only own about 50 years' worth of frags! I plan to live well into my second century so it's a concern. That's why I'm always on the lookout for the new and the interesting to add to my reserve. I wish to continue my hobby of collecting at least until the time when molecular 3d printing makes buying small items of personal hygiene obsolete. Then I'll continue with the hobby of perfumery but it will be more in a virtual way (collecting digital formulae).

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

Originally Posted by Shiny Beast

When I see a bottle of Gucci Envy, I snag it. So far this strategy has yielded three 100ml bottles. Cipher that against the other bottles I own of everything else and I'll die before I run out of frags to wear.

This is a good example. I'm not a big fan of the Envy type scent and I already have a few others that are similar (ST Dupont's Signature Pour Homme being the closest), so there's no need for me to seek it out. If I get lucky and can grab one cheaply, then I'll do that and most likely use it to swap for something I'd rather have.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I really like the idea of hoarding only my most favourite scent but then I just think, WHY? Because I am a moody person and my preferences change though not by much but in sense of perfumes I matters. I may not like a note after a couple of years, then I'd regret buying too much of that fragrance. As a collectors point of view it can be different. And also one of my objectives in life is to hire master perfumers and give them access to every material, banned or unbanned, and get a private line (somewhere between 7-14 or maybe 10) of fragrances for my personal use :P

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

Originally Posted by dougczar

I have backups of many of my favorites, but I am beginning to think I may never get to them.

This goes for me too. There are a couple of things no longer available that I kick myself over, but I think this would bother me much more if I stuck to a small collection/rotation, which isn't happening....!

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I wouldn't worry about running out of a scent if you have multiple back up bottles.
It seems most people here have way more than they will ever use in this lifetime.
Most of us seem to have a genuine addiction to perfumes and to the search for the elusive scent that will never actually exist.
(Not that it's a really damaging addiction in the grand scheme of things.)

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I have backups of some key vintage formulation favorites like Giorgio for Men (multiple bottles) and Captain by Molyneux, but most vintages I will just be SOL if they ever run out. My collection is large enough now that apart from a handful or less of absolute favorites that I frequently wear I doubt I will go through the others anyway, so the risk is relatively low.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

None of my favorites has been drastically reformulated. I hear tell Chergui is changed, but I like it currently.

The only exception is Kouros. I wish I had a dozen bottles from before the change. I'm down to 20% of one 50 ml bottle, which I bought on Ebay. I forgot how much I liked Kouros, and only rediscovered it recently.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I was very pleased to find 2 bottles of Lorenzo Villoresi's Vetiver which is now out of production, and bought both. If I had loads of money I'd stockpile Profumum Roma's Arso as I think it's just wonderful.

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I always get bored with fragrances, even my favorite of all time. I used to have back ups but then realized I'd never use them.
I even have a bottle of Cuiron by Helmut Lang that I was terrified to use because I didn't want to finish it, but I'm not even 25% done the bottle and I've had it 3 years. If you already own a lot of bottles of stuff you like, there's no reason to hoard, at least not for me. I can't even finish the bottles of stuff I like!

Re: Hoarding was the solution, but now it is too late!

I often see people moan about how reformulations are killing perfumery and how nothing great exists anymore, but yet in post after post elsewhere, those same people rave about scents created so recently they haven't been touched by reformulation.

It reminds me of a buddy of mine who couldn't get over a failed relationship. Even once he started seeing someone new, all he ever did was moan and groan about the one who got away. Eventually, the new woman dumped him. Now he moans and groans about how SHE is the one who got away... but he didn't realize how great she was when they were together. And when he meets someone new, he'll eff it up too. Some people only want what they can't have.

I'm not saying reformulation doesn't suck. It does.
I'm not saying many wonderful scents haven't been lost forever. Many have.
I'm saying to keep it in perspective. The majority of scents created in the last hundred years contain synthetic ingredients that didn't exist in the 1800s. Some of the greatest scents of the past 25 years contain ingredients that didn't exist in 1950, or even 1975. And look at how many natural ingredients are being used in new ways that were never even imagined decades ago.

Yes, ingredients are being banned. That sucks. But others are being created, discovered, or used in ways previous generations never imagined.

It's wise to stock up on a few favorites when you discover they've been reformulated or discontinued. I own a backup of Gucci Pour Homme I and II. But it's silly to think there won't be amazing perfumes created in years to come. I already own more perfume than I could use up in a decade. I bet you do too. And if you think about all of the amazing scents that were created in the last 10 to 25 years, just try to imagine all of the amazing scents to sample and buy in years to come.

I'll be thrilled to enjoy those.

You could spend your life bemoaning what you can't have, but I'd rather spend mine enjoying what I can. I'm convinced that some people don't know how to be happy. I'm so glad I'm not one of them.